This invention relates to separation. According to one aspect of the invention it relates to the separation of an organic solvent material from liquid sulfur. In another aspect of the invention it relates to a baffled separation means for separating immiscible liquids. In another aspect of the invention it relates to the recovery of liquid sulfur having minimal contamination with solvent and catalyst used in the process for producing the sulfur.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,796,796 discloses a process in which sulfur is obtained by reacting hydrogen sulfide with sulfur dioxide in contact with a liquid phase containing a selected alcohol, polyol, polyalkyleneglycol or ether and also containing a catalyst which is both a partial ester and a partial salt of a metal of Groups I-A and II-A of the Periodic Table of elements reacted with an organic polycarboxylic acid with at least one acid group esterified by the selected alcohol, polyol, polyalkyleneglycol or ether. In the process, contact is made in a packed tower between hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide passing upwards as gases and the liquid solvent with contained catalyst passing downward through the packing. In the reaction elemental sulfur is released and washed downward through the column with the solvent and the catalyst contained in the solvent. The majority of the solvent and catalyst is collected in the base of the tower and recirculated through the tower. The elemental sulfur, being heavier than the solvent, is also collected in the base of the tower and removed. There is some solvent with its contained catalyst removed along with the sulfur from the base of the tower. At times of upset operation the amount of solvent removed with the sulfur increases.
It has been discovered that passage of the liquid sulfur collected from the base of the tower through a relatively simple separation apparatus can considerably reduce the amount of solvent that finds its way with the liquid sulfur to product storage.
It is therefore an object of the this invention to provide an apparatus for the separation of solvent from liquid sulfur. It is also an object of this invention to provide a method for separating solvent from liquid sulfur.
Other aspects, objects, and the various advantages of this invention will become apparent upon studying this specification, the drawings, and the attached claims.